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"...I've Yet To Hear About Someone Dying By Plumbing Or A House Burning Down..."

That is way funny.

Here's just a few off the top of my head. These all deal with backflow issues, but as Rick pointed out there are many other areas of concern.

* Human blood in water supply
A funeral home was using an aspirator to drain human fluids from corpses. The device was connected to a sink faucet and when a low pressure condition occurred in the municipal water system blood and other contaminates entered the water system in the building. Blood was coming out of water fountains. The condition was discovered and the public water system protected before it became contaminated also.
Why did this happen? No containment backflow protection for the building and no anti-siphon device at the point of cross-connection.

* Propane gas in water mains
Hundreds of families had to evacuate their homes due to propane gas entering the municipal water system. Two home caught fire and the towns water system was contaminated.
Why did this happen? The local propane company was making a repair to a 30,000 gal propane tank. They had to first purge the tank and they used water from a private water hydrant located on their property. The residual pressure in the tank was greater than the water system pressure and propane gas flowed into the water mains for about 20 minutes. About a mile of an 8" water main was filled with propane. This could have been a disaster much larger than it was. (no cross-connection protection)

* Pesticides in drinking water (no backsiphon protection)

* Car Wash Water enters Water Main (no cross-connection protection)

* Paraquat in public water supply (no cross-connection protection)

* Heating system anti-freeze enters public water system (no cross-connection protection)

* Sodium Hydroxide enters water system (no backsiphon protection)

I could go on.

Check with your states Dept of Health or the CDC if you want some more examples.

"When we build let us think we build forever. Let it not be for present delight nor for present use alone. Let it be such work that our descendants will thank us for, and let us think, as we lay stone upon stone, that a time is to come when these stones will be held sacred because our hands have touched them, and that men will say, as they look upon the labor and wrought substance of them, "See! This our fathers did for us."
John Ruskin (1819 - 1900)

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Thats right, demand he answer your silly questions. That would justify his statements about the things service electricians see every day in peoples houses due to thinking they know what they are doing when they run wires in there own house. If your a service electrician or know anything about residential electrical work, than you know what I'm talking about. Focusing on what size ground should be used to bond that 90 doesn't prove it though.

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Sparky12, my point in questioning him is that he does not seem to be a master electrician. Someone comfortable with their position in life would not chant "I am a master electrician" over and over again unless, IMO, he was trying to convince himself.

In most places attaining that status requires some education. Formal, or what can be had informally. I get the impression this guy is not who he claims to be. I figure some questions will demonstrate the truth one way or another. I appreciate that no one has stepped in to answer for him, I'd really like to see MD's answers.

What would have happened if no qualified electricians stepped in to advise Plumber that his idea was dangerous? What if the only feedback he got was in CAPS and hysterical? Would he respect that advice?

I think more is to be gained by giving the needed advice, even if it is "Call someone, this one is definutely over your head, with respect."

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md master sparky, i suggest that you don't mess with plumbing since you are clueless about carbon monoxide, gas piping, and the health of the entire country, to name a few. last time i checked insurance rates, plumbers were higher to insure for a reason. we have alot more risk to deal with than electrical. this coming from a contractor that has never had a claim. try to get insurance to cover you for association work as a plumber$$$.

most do it yourselfers don't mess with gas piping. electrical they tend to play with. in fact my general liability coverage doesn't cover me for lpg piping. natural gas no problem.

you guys have gfi's and the newer style arc fault breakers. we don't have anything that will protect the homeowner from a flood or leak, (waste, water, gas)

these are just a few examples of the dangers in our trade.

rick.

WAIT!
Let's not forget METHANE gas!
I've seen methane gas damage in Mexico that took out blocks of city streets!

Phil
Tools Rule

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Rocky Mountain Sparky is totally right in his questioning. How do we know good Ole MD is really an electrician? Even then how do i know it's not one of my old coworkers. I'm thinking about the guy who was a fourth year apprentice and acted like he was a journey man. He came out withe some of the stupidest things i have ever heard. What is so funny is that you tell a persons manner by how they communicate their ideas and opinions.

only four simple questions? is that so hard for a master electrician?

"Diplomacy is saying nice dodging until you can find a rock." Will Rogers"If a Monkey can do your job, are you in the right profession?

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MMS, I don't know of anywhere that a homeowner can't do thier own electrical work on thier property. If someone is hired to to the work that person has to be liscensed(sp). You have lived a sheltered life if you have never heard of anyones house burning down because of a plumbling problem, Electricians don't run gas lines do they? Oh but they are known to ground to a metal pipe from time to time. So if that ground was to spark due to a short, the resulting fire would be whose fault, the plumber?

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In residential isn't that usually the service entrance wire? Maybe have a gray insulation and take at least 2 people to pull through the walls in a house!
I hated pulling that stuff, there is a nickname for it but i can't say it since josh will boot me of for typing it.

"Diplomacy is saying nice dodging until you can find a rock." Will Rogers"If a Monkey can do your job, are you in the right profession?